Journeys out of the Ordinary | Tasini

Date: Tuesday, November 26, 2019

People tell me not to think about what happened. They say that it won’t help to think about it and that I should be strong and try to be happy like before. I know they mean well, but it will take some time before I can forget about the physical abuse I experienced when I was abroad. It will take some time before I can forget about having to sleep on a cold cement floor that caused my body to ache constantly. My employers beat me, and my body is covered in the evidence of that cruelty.

Journeys out of the Ordinary | Carina

Date: Tuesday, November 26, 2019

After my husband and I separated, life was hard for me and my children, so I decided to go abroad to work. It was painful leaving my children, but I didn’t know how else to take care of them. I was a domestic worker in Dubai, for a Libyan family. It was a good job, and the family was good to me. Then one day the son in this family came home in the middle of the day, which was unusual. He was with a friend and no one else was home. I didn’t think much of it at first and went to tidy up, and...

Journeys out of the Ordinary | Abegail

Date: Tuesday, November 26, 2019

My journey started when a woman in my village connected me and several other women to a “recruitment agency” offering waitressing jobs in Malaysia. We were brought to Manila, to “process our paperwork”. Some of the women were actually minors, and when some of us didn't have money for the “processing fees”, the recruitment agency said that they would cover all of the expenses and that it would be deducted from our salary when we started to work in Malaysia. My younger sister was with me,...

Business leaders in Beijing discuss gender equality and corporate social responsibility

Date: Tuesday, November 26, 2019

[Joint press release] Organised by UN Women China, in partnership with the Delegation of the European Union (EU) to China and the Embassy of Sweden in China, the 2019 International Conference on Gender Equality and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) concluded in Beijing today, noting progress made and actions required to address gender barriers in the private sector.

Journeys out of the Ordinary | Elena’s story

Date: Monday, November 25, 2019

I’m 61 years old now, and I have 10 grandchildren. Looking back at my life, I’m proud I was able to send my children to school, and I’m happy that now as a social worker and activist, I’m able to help others who are HIV positive. The main reason I went to work abroad when I was younger was to get away from my husband. He physically, sexually, psychologically and emotionally abused me, especially when he was drunk.

Journeys out of the Ordinary |
Novelita’s story

Date: Monday, November 25, 2019

I was in my third year of college in the Philippines and worked part time as a domestic worker when I took a detour from my studies to go to Qatar to work. My Filipino employers at that time had a grandchild and the parents of that child were moving to Qatar and asked me to go with them to take care of the baby. I had planned to come back and finish my studies later, and I expected to earn a lot of money in Qatar to pay for my studies and to help my parents and siblings.

Journeys out of the Ordinary | Aye Than Dar’s story

Date: Monday, November 25, 2019

I arrived in Thailand to work as a domestic worker 16 years ago. I came from a village where there was no electricity and I didn’t even know how to use a rice cooker or an iron. To pay for the journey, I had agreed to give up six months of my salary to a local broker. And once I arrived, I never heard from the broker again and received no support. In the first place I worked, I was looking after two children, but I couldn’t speak Thai at the time, only a bit of English.

Journeys out of the Ordinary |
Than’s story

Date: Monday, November 25, 2019

Things were not like I imagined they would be when I got to Thailand. My father had remarried, and I lived with him and my stepmother. I worked in a factory packing fish and later in a shrimp peeling factory. But my father and his new wife took all the money that I earned. Some days I didn't even get any food and had no money to buy food for myself.

Journeys out of the Ordinary | Sabare’s story

Date: Monday, November 25, 2019

My husband and I came to Thailand eight years ago with our two-year-old daughter to find work. We thought things were going to be different, easier. When we first left Myanmar we had lots of troubles; there was no help and we suffered alone. In Myanmar, we had had food and a place to live, but when we came to Thailand, finding a job was difficult, and even though the income was higher, the work situation was unstable. We were dependent on the employer for food, and some days we had none. There was a lot we didn’t know. We worked in the fields picking corn. It was hard work and I was pregnant, and I gave birth to my second daughter at that time.

Journeys out of the Ordinary |
Thida’s story

Date: Saturday, November 23, 2019

I came to Thailand from Myanmar 12 years ago. Although I was married with three young sons at the time, I came by myself. I got a job in a clay pot factory where I had to work very hard but was glad to have a job. I lived in the workers’ quarters with other migrant workers, but I never felt safe. Because I was alone, men used to knock on my door at night. I never opened the door to them. And the door didn’t lock properly, so I used to put empty bottles just inside it so if someone tried to get in, the bottles would get knocked over and make noise and wake me up.